English

READING

Reading is at the heart of the school and we want all our children to be passionate about reading. Therefore, we make sure that all children have access to a range of exciting, diverse and language-rich books and reading materials. Every classroom has a stimulating and engaging book corner, and we provide many opportunities for children to read, and be read to, throughout the school day.

Children are taught the skills of decoding and comprehension depending on their age and stage of development. All children are encouraged to read at home regularly with an adult.

EYFS and KS1 have a taught daily phonics session. This teaches children to hear, say, read and write the full range of sounds needed to read and write independently. We are following the synthetics phonics programme- Read, Write, Inc. (RWI). 

KS2 have a taught daily 45-minute session, which follows the Destination Reader programme developed by Hackney Learning Trust. This involves the study of carefully selected texts at a whole-class level. Through this, children are taught the following key skills of reading comprehension: predicting, clarifying, evaluating, inferencing, making connections, summarising and questioning and how to apply them in a wider range of contexts.

By the end of KS1 children should be able to:

• decode a range of unfamiliar words using the sounds that have been taught
• segment and blend longer words
• read fluently with intonation and expression
• be exposed to a wide range of texts which they can talk about  
• discuss the types of books that they enjoy

By the end of KS2 children should be able to:

• draw on their previous reading to discuss their reading preferences
• understand what they have read and offer opinions and justifications
•  to identify and explain different genres
• read a wider range of genre
• apply strategies for understanding unfamiliar words
• independently select books and reading materials.

WRITING

The Phoenix federation uses the Literacy Tree, which is a book-based primary English planning resource. We believe that using engaging, language-rich and diverse texts, which are reflective of our community, inspire creativity and develop an enjoyment for writing.

As a federation we want our writing opportunities to be meaningful, and to be written with a clear audience and purpose in mind, whether the pieces we produce are short or long.  Using books as a stimuli, we provide the opportunity to write for a range of purposes, for example to explain, persuade, inform or instruct.  Wherever possible, writing is embedded within a text, piece of media or linked to a specific curriculum area.

PHONICS AND SPELLING

In the EYFS and Year 1, children receive a daily session in phonics. This teaches children to hear, say, read and write the full range of sounds needed to read and write independently.

From Year 2 onwards, children are taught the age-appropriate spelling patterns as outlined in the spelling appendix of the national curriculum.

All children are given a set of words to practise spelling, and from Year 1 onwards, these are tested once a week.

GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION

Wherever possible, grammar and punctuation is explored and taught within a real context: this may be done through a quality text that the children are reading, or it could be in the shared writing which all adults model as part of the teaching process. 

HANDWRITING

In the Phoenix Federation children are taught to join their letters using the Letter-Join Programme. Children practise their handwriting regularly in order to develop confidence and fluency, and all adults model a joined handwriting script.